All this talk of these bloody proles gallivanting down to their local ASDA in their nightclothes
makes me think we need something more highbrow. So...

Jazz Corner

Thelonious Monk: uniquely inventive pianist or sonic equivalent of a retarded child let loose on a keyboard?

John Coltrane: groundbreaking avant garde soloist or just a massive onanist using the tenor sax as a penis substitute?

Or just tell me about some jazz that you liked or thought was pretentious shit. Or some jizz, to spare you the trouble of striking through that last setence.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:41, 123 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I'm not a huge jazz fan
but I can listen to Cab Calloway for hours, especially Minnie the Moocher
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:43, Reply)

haha
huge ass fan.




sorry.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:10, Reply)

It annoys me Jazz is seen as highbrow and middle class now.
It's meant to be alcoholic drug abusers singing their dying hearts out.
(PsychoChomp, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:44, Reply)

Yep, and the Blues is mainly performed by middle-class white men these days
I do wish jazz would loosen up a bit and drop the snobbery though. I do wonder if that's the reason it's seen as highbrow these days, because so many modern 'free jazz' players just try to make it as obtuse and impenetrable as possible.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:48, Reply)

the blues has become a lot less emotional
I blame Clapton.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:50, Reply)

Clapton is a cunt.
Fact.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:51, Reply)

I find his music incredibly dull
Cream were good, in places, but most of his stuff is boring, or he has taken something like Crossroads and sucked all the life out of it.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:52, Reply)

I could teach him a lesson on the guitar.
I would pick up my GLP copy and smash it into the Nazi bastard's mouth.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:03, Reply)

EXCUSE ME.
Don't tar all Nazi bastards with the Clapton brush, please...
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:43, Reply)

Yes, that was dreadful of me.
Dear Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei,
So sorry for comparing you to Eric Fucking Clapton - it was a thoughtless remark which I regret saying.
DrT2
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:55, Reply)

We Nazis
never murdered our own kids....
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:14, Reply)

Steven Seagal makes more
exciting music than Clapton. If it wasn't for Riding with the King I'd probably want to shoot him.
(Himjim died a little more inside on, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:05, Reply)

Clapton's a funny one
Superb guitar player - his work with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and Cream spring to mind in particular - but just about everything he's done since Cream broke up has been utter shite.

I don't even think Layla is that good (although I do have a bit of a soft spot for the acoustic version)
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:52, Reply)

I don't like Layla
and I really don't like the acoustic version
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:53, Reply)

I like to think
that if Peter Green hadn't gone batfuck insane after a bad drugs experience and had carried on playing guitar in the '60s then he would have been bigger than Clapton today. He was certainly a better songwriter and I've always thought he was a better guitarist.

If you're after some modern blues with a bit of passion in it, check out Ian Siegal. He's rather good.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:00, Reply)

I agree with you there
Oh Well is one of my all time favourite songs

I will do, cheers
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:02, Reply)

Ooh, or alternatively
This song by Emily Loizeau. She doesn't really play blues, but this performance is a great blues number and is absolutely fucking awesome.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:04, Reply)

He is boring
But I used to listen to Layla with my first boyfriend. He wrote 'Clapton is God' on a wall in an alleyway.
Alan McDonald. I think he ended up a bit of a wrong'un.
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:55, Reply)

I think he - or at least his graffiti - got a mention in one of the Martin Scorcese Blues films

(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:02, Reply)

;)

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:04, Reply)

The same film which led me to the conclusion
that Tom Jones really, really shouldn't try to sing the Blues.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:19, Reply)

It was all over London in the late 60s
Roota's ex is either nearly 70 now or was a fucking loser copying 60s graffiti, which was, even when it was first written, complete hogwash.

That said I wish Clapton WAS God ie he didn't exist.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:24, Reply)

Well, Roota is pushing 70 herself - so it could be.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:37, Reply)

Actually I'm in my 80s

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:38, Reply)

when you said you loved the 80s
I did not know you meant YOUR 80s...
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:42, Reply)

yeah, almost as good as the Blitz years for me

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:43, Reply)

But you wear it well.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:47, Reply)

Rouge and cold cream

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:53, Reply)

Coltrane is fucking awful.
Like a cat in a spin drier.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:47, Reply)

I've never listened to Jazz
but I've always wanted to. It always looks so cool when people go to smoke filled blue-tinged jazz clubs in films and drink neat spirits and wear cocktail dresses. *sigh*

Obviously no jazz club is going to be smokey anymore. And everyone probably wears jeans and drinks blue WKD.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:48, Reply)

jazz clubs
or in fact clubs in general, should be exempt from the smoking ban
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:49, Reply)

Now that is true.
Same with football grounds.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:52, Reply)

Ronnie Scott's is full of people looking for that vibe...
...and being disappointed. Same with the horrendous House of Blues franchise in the USA - the t-shirt is much better than the experience.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:50, Reply)

Your best bet these days is a Blues Club, I'd say
As Chompy points out above, Jazz is seen as highbrow and middle class and so the jazz clubs seem to have picked up on that by being expensive and pretentious. Ain't Nothin' But and Charlotte Street Blues are good places to try if you're in London - same kind of atmosphere you're after and a bit more relaxed, and although no one wears cocktail dresses you can get decent grown-up beer in Ain't Nothin' But.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:56, Reply)

maybe I'll wear a cocktail dress anyway
and show 'em how it's done.

I want prohibition to come back so I can go to a bar like Fat Sam's Grand Slam speakeasy.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:06, Reply)

Me too
In my fringy dress and my headfeather
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:09, Reply)

You know I was picturing you as I wrote it

( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:11, Reply)

I love you
in a waaaay...
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:12, Reply)

*hilarious strikethrough*

(PsychoChomp, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:21, Reply)

hilarious
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:23, Reply)

good call
anybody who is anybody will soon walk through that door
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:13, Reply)

*does hands-on-knees dance*

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:14, Reply)

we once did a cover of Bad Guys from Bugsy Malone
it was legendary
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:15, Reply)

Oh my
That is cool
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:15, Reply)

cool bumderifically gay.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:44, Reply)

*chorlte*

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:48, Reply)

On the other hand...
John Horn's 'Inside the Taj Mahal' is a great example of psychedelic jazz.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:49, Reply)

not entirely a fan of jazz though I quite like some stuff that people have done that is jazzy, if that makes sense
I like Jamie Cullum [I've only really heard his first CD] but perhaps he is considered more pop than jazz, I also like Corinne Bailey Rae and she may be the same.
( Lisette von Falcon, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:50, Reply)

I've been trying to think of a nice way to put this
but I really can't stand Jamie Cullum. I don't know whether that's me developing my own jazz-snobbery or whether it's just 'cause what I've heard of his output has been shite.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:32, Reply)

Yea - I want my £9.99 back.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:48, Reply)

I don't like jazz
I hated when Comander Riker would start playing in the middle of the chapter for no reason at all.
(Aberracion Life's getting very complicated, but a lot of fun., Wed 19 May 2010, 15:54, Reply)

I listened
to an amazing jazz band in a wine bar in Reykjavik once. I've never been able to remember the name of the bar or the band and it's rather gutting - I would have bought their cd but it was the night before my flight back and I didn't have enough cash left. /sigh
I listened to Led Bib recently, that's about as jazzy as it;s got. I didn't like them. I like John Coltrane though. Never heard any Thelonious Monk.
(berk, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:56, Reply)

Completely by chance I was in Montreal wasting a week (years ago).
Everywhere I went there was live jazz. I concluded that was all Montreal folk listened to. Right at the end of the week I realised why. Duh!
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:10, Reply)

The only jazz and blues stuff I've really enjoyed is from....
N'Orleans. Or that area. I don't know names or whatever but just the feel of that music is nice. And some of the Cajun stuff.
(porkylips looks better as the sun goes down., Wed 19 May 2010, 15:58, Reply)

Jeez Porky. You frightened me popping up like that.
Where have you been all day?
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:06, Reply)

Heh.
Went to hospital with wife. She needed a scan cos she's getting on and lady bits need looking at.
Then went shopping with boy for bits and pieces for his car.
I've also confirmed that by judicious use of spending constraints I really don't need to work anymore at the moment. Even less so come december.
In other news, just had confirmation that the last part of lump sum payments are on their way. The bank love me at the moment.

I promise that is the last gloat. I've cracked at least one molar due to jaw clenching while asleep. Fuck.
(porkylips looks better as the sun goes down., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:07, Reply)

The last time I heard live jazz
was when I went for a meal at The Big Bang in Oxford which only does sausage and mash. But expensive high brow sausage and mash at £20 for sausage, mash and a glass of wine. Was in their underground room, with jazz playing quietly on the side. The band was pretty good, but I'd heard most of the songs which means it must have been ridiculously mainstream
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Wed 19 May 2010, 15:59, Reply)

Miles Davis I don't dig.
But then a track will turn up in a film soundtrack, and I see it all.
Film ends - the magic has gone. Go figure.
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:05, Reply)

Must all be about context then.
Who'da thunkit.
(porkylips looks better as the sun goes down., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:06, Reply)

'Ooh look at me I'm so good I don't even need to play in time or tune, it's that amazing, love me'
cunts
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:07, Reply)

I'm not much of a fan of Jazz and like Blues a little more.
I kinda want to be, because Jazz/Blues bars look damn cool. I tried to get into some, as my Dad's a fan (and used to play organ in a jazz/blues band in his youth), but I just never got hooked.

Thing is, it just doesn't grab my soul like Rock, Metal or Industrial Hardcore do. I need a pounding bassline, or down-tuned grinding guitars.
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:08, Reply)

Jazz is only one step above mime as wankiest of all artforms

( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:12, Reply)

Jazz is only one step above wanking as an artform.

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:16, Reply)

try some Ephel Duath then
they're proper jazz metal. it's mental. or maybe Psyopus. that's proper proper bonkers.
(beanojam isn't really Ricardo Flange, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:15, Reply)

I've tried listening to Billie Holiday and Nina Simone
but it's just not my bag, baby
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:12, Reply)

What about the wonderful Peggy Lee?

(porkylips looks better as the sun goes down., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:14, Reply)

I've only heard some of hers stuff (same for Ella Fitzgerald)
I just cant get into it
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:17, Reply)

I adore Peggy

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:18, Reply)

I loved her in Lady & the Tramp

( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:25, Reply)

Which one was she?

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:26, Reply)

Peg!
The blues singing dog with the hair over one of her eyes. She sang "He's a tramp".
Wait, I'll find a pic.

( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:31, Reply)

*hoooowls*

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:32, Reply)

And I'll find some
notes
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:40, Reply)

Her 'Sitting on the dock of the bay' is fucking brilliant

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:52, Reply)

I prefer a bit more up beat than those two
that said, I love some Nina Simone stuff
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:14, Reply)

Etta James too...

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:17, Reply)

Oh god
Etta...
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:18, Reply)

I Would rather Go Blind

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:20, Reply)

At laaaaaaaasssttttt.....

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:21, Reply)

I often sing that in the shower
Often
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:22, Reply)

In the shower I sing Party Fears Two by The Associates.
Not sure why I shared that...
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:26, Reply)

I sing Andrew WK favourites
such as Let's Make Sex and Party Hard.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:34, Reply)

I also sing Dream a Little Dream
and Since I Don't Have You
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:35, Reply)

haha I sing Dream a Little Dream
it's the only song I don't absolutely butcher with my tone deaf ear. To be honest I only sing it quietly so no one hears and judges me.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:37, Reply)

I think it's difficult to keep in tune with that song!

( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:39, Reply)

Jerusalem, You're So Rude, Message In A Bottle (must be idea association!) are my morning gifts to the street.
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:43, Reply)

'Leave your hat on' - how was that not banned


here you go
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:27, Reply)

Hahah I know
Listening now
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:34, Reply)

That's because you're young, gifted and black
that's where it's at
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:17, Reply)

Oscar Peterson
was just the business. The fact that he had huge hands and used to play his left hand riffs in major 10ths certainly helped, but he was still head and shoulders above most other pianists in knowing how to knock a great jazz tune out of a piano.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:14, Reply)

He was an absolute fucking legend - possibly the best thing to come out of Canada apart from large amounts of moose
And spookily enough I've got his ...Plays the Cole Porter Songbook album on the headphones right now.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:18, Reply)

I'm horrible unimpressed
That not one person has written something that indicates them turning towards the camera, looking straight into it, and saying 'Nice.'
( Agnostic Antichrist Baltimora, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:14, Reply)

Mellow.

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:17, Reply)

*dons turtleneck and pinstripe jacket*
Great.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:20, Reply)

Satisfied, baby.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:44, Reply)

Im afraid I agree with Alexei Sayle about jazz
"There's two kinds of jazz and they're both crap"
Ymmv.
(Captain Placid 24/7 ball gags, brownie mix and clown porn, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:26, Reply)

A jazz chord.
I have a friend who’s a self-proclaimed jazz buff*. He’s a bit older then me and a rather serious, dour Scotsman. I used to DJ with him, we’d play funk and hip hop. Now, I remain CONVINCED he was into jazz as some kind of statement – some of the impenetrable bollocks he used to have on when I went round there was definitely for show: like 5 completely deaf people who’d never played an instrument before all hammering away at once in some kind of God-awful cacophony. Simply terrible.

But through my interest in hip hop and the move away from funk breaks in the early 90s (which had, by and large, been exhausted by producers), towards jazz samples, I discovered just how broad a palette jazz is. The Blue Note Breaks series of compilations is incredible: some of it’s a bit noodly but on the whole the selections are accessible and highly entertaining. Tracks like 'Walk Tall' by Cannonball Adderley or 'Repeat After Me' by The Three Sounds are fucking amazing.

I have another pal who claims to be into avant garde jazz and once again I’m certain it’s a pose. When I’m round his, he’s always trying to get me to listen to what sounds like a cat walking across the keys of a piano. It’s like a fucking endurance test.

*He once convinced me to spend £30 on a ticket to see Herbie Hancock at the Barbican. I’d been up all night and had trouble staying awake. My pal and his jazz-buff chums were laughing at me as I nodded off – but they were laughing on the other side of their berets when I woke up after a refreshing half-hour kip to find the same shitty, directionless tune that I’d fallen asleep to STILL PLAYING.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:33, Reply)

the extent of my knowledge of jazz
is Everybody Wants to be a Cat.

Wow, I should really broaden my musical tastes outside the realms of Disney.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:36, Reply)

:D
Thomas!
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:37, Reply)

I loved the hippy Siamese cat playing Chopsticks
Disney is so PC.
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:38, Reply)

Haha me and my parents sat and watched that film recently.
Class
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:40, Reply)

I agree
I like jazz, but it has to have some sort of recognisable form to the melody or even the chord structure. Free form jazz is the musical equivalent of modern art. A lot of Jackson Pollocks.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:36, Reply)

You know that as soon as you leave
he puts on a nice bit of Bon Jovi, or Coldplay or...(what's middle of the road shit?) David Grey.

No wait...Lighthouse Family
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:36, Reply)

Sade.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:45, Reply)

Marquis de?

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:46, Reply)

Knob.

Sadé

But for bonus points - to whom did MdS dedicate his books?
( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 16:52, Reply)

Erm...
Something to do with lubricants?
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:59, Reply)

was it Sade?

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:01, Reply)

So close. Check your books when you get home.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 17:03, Reply)

Was it Kris Akabusi?

(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:04, Reply)

Hahaha

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:13, Reply)

I was serious about my answer.
I am sure it has something to do with lubricants.
(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:05, Reply)

She released a song recently
she hasn't changed one bit since the 80's (in looks or sound)
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:56, Reply)

She still has the same one note range then?

(Tugnut Ex of this parish, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:59, Reply)

She writes most of her own tunes too. Still the same two chords though.

( Larry Vest One day at a time, sweet Jesus, FFS., Wed 19 May 2010, 17:04, Reply)

I fancy her.

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:13, Reply)

Yup
the same dirge
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:07, Reply)

Jazz, I find, has the same problem as progressive rock
When it's done well, it can be exciting, inventive, challenging and a real joy to listen to. Unfortunately there are always going to be some wankers who take it too far and disappear, sax, double bass and all, up their own posteriors. There are some, like Coltrane, Hancock and Monk, who veer very close to that line - some of their stuff is superb but other times you just wish they'd shut the fuck up.

As for the wankers that spend all their time making or listening to the really avant garde stuff, I agree, it has to be posturing. I really fail to see how anyone can get off on such formless noise, other than by getting off on other people's reaction to it.

Cannonball Adderley was superb - if you're ever in need of some mellow latin jazz, his Cannonball's Bossa album is worth seeking out.
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:42, Reply)

Avant-garde Jazz strikes me
as one of the clearest examples of 'Emperor's New Clothes' music ever.

Everyone knows it's shit but some people are afraid to be the first one to say so, in case people think they don't 'get it' and it's somehow their fault.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:45, Reply)

One of the best jazz bands I saw
was the Humphrey Lyttelton Band. Now there was some good, straightforward, enjoyable jazz. A nice blend of swing and trad played by a superb team of musicians (of a very wide range of ages). No snobbery, nothing 'highbrow' about it, nothing you had to 'get.' I appreciate that a genre has to progress, and new and more inventive writers would be welcome to try and throw it around a bit, but I really wish some players would just stop, mid-saxophone wank and say,
"Guys, sorry, but this really is just shit, isn't it? Can we just play a bit of Gershwin for a change?"
(Now that I would pay £30 to see)
(LongJohnBaldry, Wed 19 May 2010, 16:53, Reply)

there's a presidents of the USA song called Jazz Guy
it has some great lyrics some of which I will now relate:

"I wanna be a jazz guy and play black music for white people,
I wanna learn all the chords and solo till everyone in the room,
is bored,
beyond,
belief,
I can't wait,
for the end of my solo,
sweet sweet relief"
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 19 May 2010, 17:12, Reply)

If anyone's still interested
There's a lot more to jazz than just some twat stood on a stage and farting through a saxophone for a hour.

Next time you've got some spare cash and are in the mood for some new music, pick up one of the Tru Thoughts Records samplers. The 10 Year Anniversary release is especially good.

Oh, and anyone who likes Nina Simone, try Alice Russell's Under The Munka Moon:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJ3g7gk15Tk&feature=related
(Frank., Wed 19 May 2010, 18:44, Reply)

Miles Davis's "On The Corner" is worth a spin, even if it's just the once.
It's got a lot of Sly Stone and Indian classical influences and it's pretty thorny stuff, so most jazz purists hate it. I like Herbie Hancock's "Sextant" too, for similar reasons; plus I'm a big fan of analogue synths, mellotrons and the like.
( The Mock TurtIe ™ --- Thinks you are a cunt, on, Wed 19 May 2010, 19:56, Reply)